Evaluation of Golden LEAF Community Assistance Initiative–Request for Proposals

From: Golden LEAF Foundation

We appreciate your interest in the Golden LEAF Foundation and our work to assist rural, economically distressed and/or tobacco dependent counties with economic transition. Since 2007, Golden LEAF has operated a Community Assistance Initiative to provide support for Tier 1 counties seeking solutions to prominent issues that hinder the county from being competitive in a global economy.

The Foundation Board has provided a reserve of $2 million for each Tier 1 county to fund projects that help "move the needle” on the Foundation mission of economic transformation and growth, while taking advantage of local expertise, goal setting and opportunities. By the end of this Initiative, grantsmaking in 46 counties totaling over $90 million will have been provided. Every county that has had a Tier 1 ranking (a measure of relative economic distress) by the Department of Commerce since 2007 will have participated.

The Foundation staff and consultants facilitate a process whereby members of the public in each Tier 1 county participate to establish goals that are used to evaluate the potential success of proposed projects, hear feedback from Golden LEAF staff on the merits and challenges of initial proposals, and create a review team of local participants in the process to review and make recommendations on a slate of proposals to submit to the Foundation. Meetings in the county to facilitate this community engagement process are held approximately once a month and are noticed in local media and are open to the public.

The Foundation Board retains the ultimate authority on funding decisions, consistent with its fiduciary responsibility under the Consent Decree, North Carolina General Statutes, and the Foundation charter.

The process for all Tier 1 counties is expected to be concluded by June 2013.

Expectations for the Evaluation of the community assistance initiative

In response to the initiative, the Foundation is now requesting proposals from eligible non-profit and education agencies to develop and administer a coordinated evaluation for the Community Assistance Initiative. Over the term of the initiative, Golden LEAF has funded 165 projects representing over $73 million in investments in 37 rural counties. Nine counties remain to complete the process . The Foundation desires an independent evaluation to assist the foundation with documenting outcomes and lessons learned. A well-designed, coordinated approach should:

· Evaluate the outcomes/impact of the grants awarded to identify common characteristics and/or best practices for implementation of successful projects and common barriers to achieving success;

· Evaluate the utility of the Initiative process in identifying and recommending projects that accomplish the mission of Golden LEAF, as well as increase awareness of and appreciation for the Foundation and its mission and sustained civic engagement among participants;

· Make recommendations for a potential second round of community-based grantsmaking to accomplish Foundation goals in the most effective and efficient manner including, but not necessarily limited to:

o Whether the county level is the appropriate locus for the process

o Whether the Tier 1 ranking is the appropriate measure to use for CAI participation

o Whether $2 million is an appropriate level of funding for each participating entity

o Whether the community-based process can be improved to increase the probability of of achieving desired outcomes

o Whether the Foundation should limit the priority areas or types of grants to be considered

o Whether the program should be an entitlement to each community or competitive

· Involve collaboration with GLF staff to guide and revise the evaluation process to best meet the needs of the Foundation and grantees.

community assistance initiative Description – EVALUATION SUBJECT

Golden LEAF Community Assistance Initiative is a special program of Golden LEAF intended to address the human and physical infrastructure challenges that keep Tier 1 counties from successfully making progress to transform and grow their economies. Golden LEAF has set aside $2 million for each of the 46 counties that have been or are currently in Tier 1 status. So far, 165 grants have been awarded totaling over $73 million in 37 counties. Major areas of funding include education, workforce development, infrastructure, economic development and health care.

Initiative priorities include:

ü Identification of projects that "move the needle” in the county toward Golden LEAF goals and successful implementation of the funded projects

ü Building awareness of the Foundation and its mission

ü Recognition by participants of a transparent, accountable and consensus-oriented process

ü Focus of Foundation staff and grantsmaking on communities most in need of economic transition assistance

Eligibility

Applicants must meet the following criteria to be eligible for a grant:

1. Be a governmental entity or 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization,
2. Serve the people of North Carolina,

Application Deadlines:

The applications are due by noon Friday, September 15^th, 2012. Questions may be referred to Dan Gerlach, President of the Foundation (dgerlach@goldenleaf.org) or Pat Cabe, Vice President/Community Assistance and Communications (pcabe@goldenleaf.org)